Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Patrick Butler.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Brian Patrick. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Early on, I was able to filter my love of watching movies into the making of my own. A source of inspiration was my older brother Daniel, who would make stop motion movies, and later his own short narratives and music videos.
From age nine to about age 17, I would make little movies at home or with my cousins. While our experiments with homemade gore effects developed slightly over time, the thing that remained constant was the absurdity of the videos.
While acting in and directing some plays in college, I started teaming up with local San Diego filmmakers, acting in features such as “South of 8” and “Thane of East County” (aka “Blood Will Have Blood”) as well as several shorts.
After working closely together on “South of 8”, in 2014 I teamed up with Tony Olmos and Luke Pensabene to make my first scripted narrative short “Hatred” – a horror drama I wrote/directed based on “Scary Stories to tell in the Dark” and folktales that had fascinated me for a long time.
The following year, we teamed up again for a horror comedy titled “The Phantom Hour”, which gave silent German Expressionist horror and parlour-room mysteries the Mel Brooks treatment in a concise 7-minute runtime.
In 2017, I aimed for a longer runtime with my first feature “Friend of the World”, a sci-fi thriller to be released later this year. I wrote it with the intended shooting location of Luke’s Gray Area studio space in San Diego. It is roughly an hour-long dark comedy sci-fi with a “Twilight Zone” feel and elements of body horror, absurd humor and satire.
In the lengthy post-production period for “Friend of the World”, while visual effects were being perfected, I teamed up again with Luke and Anthony Leone for a gory noir comedy I wrote titled “Fruitful Mold” – one of the most fun shoots, and it shows.
Our current times in 2020 favor the pre and post-production phases of making a film much more than the actual filming of one. We are using this time to finish up the projects that are in the final stages and prepare for those to come – hopefully soon!
Has it been a smooth road?
When doing non-film/acting related work, I am often absorbed by a flow of ideas for whatever projects are coming up. It doesn’t inhibit my efficiency, but it’s the natural place my brain goes to and it’s hard to turn off.
Like many people who find themselves pursuing a career for these impulses, I have to be frugal about non-film related expenses between jobs. It also means I am almost always working or focusing on various aspects of a project in one way or another and it takes a lot of time. Being a husband and father, this can get quite difficult and at times very stressful and tension-inducing.
Though I am deeply fulfilled in the pursuit of my creative obsessions, I am currently still paving the road and at times it feels like there’s miles to go before that next landmark.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Charybdis Pictures – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My company is called Charybdis Pictures, founded in 2017 with the production of “Friend of the World”, and continuing with our second feature “Fruitful Mold”.
Though we produce primarily all materials for the creation, promotion and potential distribution of films – from the script to the footage, edit, music, sound mix, and promotional trailers/posters for the product – we are constantly looking for outside talents to collaborate with on fresh new ideas.
“Friend of the World” is now completed and entering the tricky screening situation we find ourselves at in 2020. Online? Limited attendance, in person screenings? Those are still being decided by the powers that be, but things are definitely progressing for the movie and we are excited for people to see our first big venture on any screen. It strongly represents the uncanny, introspective, singular type of films we aim to produce in various genres going forward. The artists involved have made it a very strong piece of moviemaking, and I am so proud and excited to share the final product as well as those to come in the future.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Like every actor I know, I have had some difficult, ego-shattering gaps between projects. Conversely, I have been able to perform comedy to wide audiences with juicy roles in viral web content like “Zach King’s Day Off” and TV shows like “Laff Mobb’s Laff Tracks”, as well as several days as a background actor on the set of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood”.
Any strong issues/drawbacks I could try to come up with about LA would only be a redefining of the very positive aspects that led me to move here in the first place.
A cultural hub of creative minds from around the world, enchanted by the history, the promise of success, the ability to network and collaborate in close proximity to people who share an enigmatic compulsion for story consumption and creation.
That’s awesome in that it is the perfect place to be for someone with those interests. But it’s also challenging in that you instantly become the smallest fish in the biggest pond.
That challenge can lead to devastation for some, but it’s important to remember that that’s where most success stories begin – especially the most compelling ones. Without the obstacles pushing you to work harder and become a stronger version of yourself, no success could be properly earned or appreciated.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://charybdispictures.com
- Email: [email protected] [email protected]
- Instagram: @brianpeebutler @friend_oftheworld @charybdis_pictures
- Facebook: facebook.com/brianbutlerofficial facebook.com/FOTWmovie facebook.com/charybdispictures
- Twitter: @brianpeebutler @charybdispics
Image Credit:
All subjects and photographers are listed in photo filenames. Brian Patrick Butler photo courtesy of Anthony Leone. “Friend of the World” behind the scenes photos courtesy of Niko Eden. “Friend of the World” poster design by Brian Patrick Butler. “Friend of the World” film still shot by DP Ray Gallardo. “Hatred” film still shot by DP Tony Olmos. “The Phantom Hour” film still shot by DP Casey Richardson.
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